Resin Mixing & Degassing

Resin Mixing & Degassing:

Mixing: 

We recommend mixing for several minutes in a 5 gallon bucket with a mixer attached to a power drill. Scrape 100% of the surface area on the sides and bottom of the plastic bucket with a long silicone spatula to move any unmixed resin into the bulk of the mix. Again power mix for several more minutes. Scrape and mix one more time.

Degassing: 

After mixing. it is always best to vacuum-degas resin prior to pouring. This eliminates most bubbles during the resin pour. However, if that is not possible, just let the resin stand for 30+ minutes or until it is substantially clear of bubbles.  Because our mixed resin has the lowest thickness (viscosity) AND the slowest/coolest cure in the industry, degassing by letting it stand works better with our resin than the competitions’ resins.

After the deep pour into the mold, you often see YouTube videos of people popping surface bubbles via use of a propane torch passed lightly over the top. While that will work, we prefer using a hot air gun for two reasons:

  1. Less fire hazard in your shop! (Open flames are always best avoided in a household or shop!)
  2. Open flames create carbon dioxide right at the surface, which almost instantly reacts with the amine curing agents in the liquid resin. This can leave a whitish residue on the surface of the resin (called “carbamation”), can increase yellowing, and/or may leave the surface a little tacky if the cure is less there as a result. It will wash off with water or sand off. However, using hot air guns (with a concentrating nozzle to mimic torches) minimizes this potential problem.

Settling? During cure, you may well notice fillers, mica flakes or colored pigments gradually settling to the bottom of the casting. If you want to reverse this, as the resin slowly thickens up (but before gelling!), gently - without entraining air bubbles - run a wooden tongue depressor or a silicone spatula through the resin to resuspend the fillers. When it begins to thicken up they will stop settling. There will be plenty of time to resuspend any settling fillers.